ONE YEAR OUTCOME OF BABIES WITH SEVERE NEONATAL HYPERBILIRUBINEMIA AND REVERSIBLE ABNORMALITY IN BRAINSTEM AUDITORY EVOKED RESPONSES

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1 ONE YEAR OUTCOME OF BABIES WITH SEVERE NEONATAL HYPERBILIRUBINEMIA AND REVERSIBLE ABNORMALITY IN BRAINSTEM AUDITORY EVOKED RESPONSES A.K. Deorari Meharban Singh G.K. Ahuja M.S. Bisht Ashok Verma V.K. Paul D.A. Tandon ABSTRACT Brainstem auditory evoked responses (BAER) were longitudinally recorded prospectively in 18 term infants with neonatal hyperbilirubinemia (NHB) (total serum bilirubin >15 mg/dl). Seven neonates had abnormal BAER. Wave complex IV-V was absent in eight recordings in NHB group while they were normal in the control group (p <0.001). Prolongation of latency of waves I and V and interwave conduction time (wave I-V) occurred in jaundiced infants especially when unconjugated serum bilirubin level rose above 22 mg/dl. The abnormalities in BAER reversed to normal in all seven neonates after exchange blood transfusion indicating transient nature of bilirubin toxicity to the brain. All seven neonates in the study and control group had normal hearing, development quotient and were free of neurological sequelae on follow up for one year. Key words: Brainstem auditory evoked responses (BAER), Neonatal hyperbilirubinemia (NHB), Development quotient (DQ). Neonatal hyperbilirubinemia (NHB) is a common problem affecting 5-6% of newborn babies. Persistence of high levels of unconjugated bilirubin for a long duration may lead to neurologic sequelae among the survivors(l). There is no single level of bilirubin which warrants active intervention in the form of phototherapy or exchange blood transfusion. Brainstem auditory evoked responses (BAER) provide useful information regarding the neuro-physiological status of the 8th nerve, the cochlear nucleus, superior olivary nucleus, lateral leminiscus and the inferior colliculus in the brainstem(2-4). Bilirubin damage classically involves superior olive, lateral lemniscus and inferior colliculus(5). None of the previous studies have looked prospectively for developmental and neurological outcome of neonates with reversible abnormal BAER. In the present study BAER were recorded longitudinally to document pathophysiglogic changes that occur in association With neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. Neonates with abnormal BAER were subjected to exchange blood transfusion. These neonates were followed up for developmental, hearing and neurological examination till 1 year of age. Material and Methods The study group comprised of 18 term neonates born between April 1988 to May From the Department of Pediatrics, Neurology and Otorhinolaryngology, All India Institute of Medical Science, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi Reprint requests: Dr. A.K. Deorari, Associate Professor, Neonatal Division, Department of Pediatrics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi Received for publication: July 27, 1993; Accepted: April 5,

2 DEORARI ET AL who developed hyperbilirubinemia (serum bilirubin >15 mg/dl). The following subjects were excluded from the study: (i) Gestation <37 weeks or >42 weeks; (ii) Apgar score of <6 at 1-minute; (iii) Presence of congenital malformations; (iv) Complicated neonatal course such as respiratory distress syndrome, hypoglycemia, septicemia, etc; and (v) Birth weight and/or head circumference less than 10th percentile or more than 90th percentile for the gestation. The control group comprised of 20 term neonates without clinical jaundice. They were selected to standardize the test and served as an internal ethnic control for the developmental assessment. The exclusion criteria were similar to those of the study group. Informed consent was obtained from the parents of the newborns who served as subjects for the study. They were explained the need for follow up study for evaluation of development quotient and hearing. BAER were recorded on the day when neonatal hyperbilirubinemia was detected and subsequently every hours till serum bilirubin level fell below 15 mg/dl. BAER was performed in a dark quiet room by computerized electric response audiometer Nicolette Click acoustic stimuli, alternating in polarity were presented by an earphone to each ear alternately at an intensity of 75 decibles (db) hearing level at a rate of 20 clicks/second. The electrical activity was recorded as the potential difference between a mastoid electrode and a scalp vertex electrode. This was filtered between 150 and 3000 Hz and averaged to 2048 stimuli. Recordings were made in duplicate from each ear. A built in chart recorder provided tracings of the response. BRAINSTEM AUDITORY EVOKED RESPONSES The following parameters were evaluated: (0 The presence or absence of wave complexes III and IV-V; (ii) Latency of wave I, III and V: It was measured from the time of click stimulus to the peak of a particular wave; and (iii) Interwove conduction time wave V to I: Also known as brainstem transmission time (BTT), it is the conduction time for stimulus to travel brainstem. The BAER was considered as abnormal: (a) if no definitie wave form III and/or IV-V complex were seen at 75 db; and (b) if brainstem transmission time (interpeak distance between wave I and IV-V complex) was greater than + 2 SD for the gestational age. Babies with jaundice (>15 mg/dl) were treated with phototherapy. If the BAER was identified abnormal (based on above criteria) in addition to raised serum bilirubin levels, double volume blood exchange transfusion was performed. Babies were followed up in the special high risk babies clinic for evaluation of development quotient (DQ) by Nancy Bayley Scale at 6 months and 12 months(6). Repeat BAER were done at 1 month ± 7 days, 6 months ± 15 days and 12 months ± 15 days. At 6 months and 12 months, hearing was evaluated by parental questioning, behavioral audiometery and impedance audiometry(7). A detailed clinical examination was done in all the follow up cases. Statistical analysis was done using Students 't' test and Fisher's exact test. Results The mean gestational age of jaudiced infants (eight boys, ten girls) was 39.0 ± 0.41 weeks (median 39 weeks) and their birth 916

3 INDIAN PEDIATRICS weight ranged from 2.3 kg to 3.3 kg. Thirteen were born by uncomplicated spontaneous vaginal delivery while five were delivered by elective cesarean section. Apgar score was >6 at 1 minute. The causes of jaundice included Rh iso-immunization in two, ABO incompatibility in five, G-6-PD deficiency in two, and idiopathic in nine. The mean age of onset of jaundice was 4±2 days. The control group consisted of 20 neonates (9 boys, 11 girls) with mean age at the time of BAER as 3 ± 2 days. Mean gestational age was 39 ± 0.3 weeks and birth weight ranged between 2.6 to 3.4 kg. Latency, interwave conduction time in control group and neonates who underwent exchange blood transfusion are shown in Table I. The following abnormalities in BAER were recorded in patients with neonatal hyperbilirubinemia before exchange blood transfusion. Loss of waves: Five of 18 jaundiced ne- VOLUME 31-AUGUST 1994 onates demonstrated loss of waves, I, III and wave complex IV-V whereas these waves were present in all the recordings in control infants (p <0.001 by the Fisher exact test). In eight of the recordings in the infants with hyperbilirubnemia, the wave complex IV-V were absent. Wave complex IV-V was absent bilaterally in 3 and unilaterally in 2. It was accompanied by absence of wave III and wave I in four and two occasions, respectively. All these neonates had serum bilirubin levels above 24 mg/dl. Latencies and interwave conduction times: In four neonates (included two neonates with unilateral wave complex IV-V absence) I-V conduction time in six recordings were +2 SD more than the mean when compared to control infants (Table II). These neonates had serum bilirubin levels above 22 mg/dl. Relationship of abnormal BAER to bilirubin levels: The mean ± SD maximum TABLE I - Latency and Interwave Conduction Time Before/After Exchange Blood Transfusion (Mean±SD) Conduction Group Serum bilirubin Latency (msec) time (msec) mg/dl I ill V I to V (BIT*) (a) Control infants 1.86 ± ± ± ± 0.23 (n = 20) (36) (40) (40) (36) (b) Before exchange ± ± ± ± ± 0.73 blood transfusion (n=7) (12) (10) (6) (6) (c) After exchange ± ± ± ± ± 0.53 blood transfusion (n=7) (14) (14) (14) (14) p value <0.001 NS NS NS NS (b vs C) (t=2.06) (t=1.39) Total number of measurements are' shown in parentheses. * Brainstem transmission time. 917

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5 INDIAN PEDIATRICS bilirubin concentration in jaundiced neonates with abnormal BAER was ± 1.59 mg/dl which decreased to ± 2.13 mg/dl within 24 hours following exchange blood transfusion. Abnormal BAER (vide supra) occurred only if serum bilirubin values were above 22.8 mg/dl. Seven neonates with abnormal BAER and high serum bilirubin levels were subjected to double volume exchange blood transfusion. The wave complexes reappeared in all jaundiced infants in whom they were absent initially. The amplitude and latency as well as interwave conduction time improved following exchange blood transfusion (Table I). The clinical and BAER details before and after exchange blood transfusion are as in Table II and Fig.1. VOLUME 31-AUGUST 1994 Hearing evaluation: Seven infants with neonatal hyperbilirubinemia who underwent exchange blood transfusion and sixteen control infants reported for follow up. Hearing was normal as assessed by parental questioning, behavioral and impedance audiometery at 12 months of age. Development Quotient (DQ): The mean Development Motor Quotient (DMQ; 118 ± 6.3 vs 124 ± 6.2) and Deve-lopment Mental Quotient (DMeQ; 111 ± 6.8 vs 116 ± 8.6) in the study control groups were comparable and normal at 1 year of age. Neurological sequelae: None of study and control group babies developed seizures, motor deficits or features of cerebral palsy on follow up till 1 year of age m sec. Fig. 1. BAER record on follow up in a neonate with NHB of 27 mg/dl at the age of 3 days. Note absence of wave complex IV-V in Right ear and increased complitude of waves following exchange blood transfusion at the age of 4 days. Note progressive improvement on day 5 and 8 with serum bilirubin levels of 9.6 mg/dl and 4.2 mg/dl. Follow up normal record at 25 and 175 days. 919

6 DEORARI ET AL. Discussion The BAER consists of series of waves which represent the electrophysiologic response to auditory stimuli recorded by scalp electrodes. These waves are considered to represent electrical events evoked by auditory stimulation of the eighth nerve, the superior olive, and the inferior colliculus, respectively(2,3). Abnormalities of BAER following neonatal hyperbilirubinemia have been described earlier(8,10). Prolongation of brainstem conduction time occured at auditory nerve and brain stem level in NHB. In addition, aberrations of wave complexes IV-V and III appeared at higher bilirubin levels. These changes reverted to normal following exchange blood transfusion. The waves reappeared and latencies decreased following exchange blood transfusion. This indicates improved brainstem functioning following exchange blood transfusion. Similar observations have been reported by other workers( 11-13). Hearing deficit is the commonest sequelae of bilirubin encephalopathy, due to brainstem dysfunction(14). Hearing evaluation and DQ on follow up was within the normal range in all babies in whom abnormalities reverted back to normal following exchange blood transfusion. Minor neurological deficits were not observed in any infant with NHB during first year of life. The abnormal BAER, which is reversible following timely exchange blood transfusion, is consistent with the concept of transient bilirubin encephalopathy. Bedside BAER may provides a useful additional tool to serum bilirubin levels while deciding the need for exchange blood transfusion in neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. The neurological outcome of NHB with serum bilirubin values ranging between 22- BRAINSTEM AUDITORY EVOKED RESPONSES 30 mg/dl is uncertain but it is recommended that unconjugated serum bilirubin level should not be allowed to cross 22 mg/dl in term infants. Our observations suggest that when facilities for BAER recording are not available, it is recommended that a term infant with NHB should be exchanged if total serum bilirubin approaches a level of 20 mg/dl. REFERENCES 1. Johnston WH, Angara V, Baumal R, Hawke WA, Johnson RH, Keet S, Wood M. Erythroblastosis fetalis and hyperbilirubinemia: A 5 year follow-up with neurological, psychological and audiological evaluation. Pediatrics 1967, 39: Jewett DL. Volume conducted potentials in response to auditory stimuli as detected by averaging in the cat. Electroencephal Clin Neurophysiol 1970, 28: Buchwald J, Huang CM. Far field acoustic response: Origins in the cat. Science 1975, 189: Starr A, Hamilton AE. Correlation between confirmed sites of neurologic lesions and abnormalities of farfield auditory brainstem responses. Electroencephal Clin Neurophysiol 1976, 41: Dublin WB. Neurologic lesions of erythroblastosis fetails in relation to nuclear deafness. Am J Clin Pathol 1951, 21: Bayley N. Bayley Scales of Infant Development, New York, Psychological Corporation, 1969, p Northern JL, Downs MP. Hearing in Children, 3rd edn. Baltimore,. Williams and Wilkins, Nakamura H, Takada S, Shimabuku R, Matsuo M, Matsuo T, Negishi H. Auditory nerve and brainstem evoked responses in newborn infants with hyperbilirubinemia. Pediatrics 1985, 75:

7 INDIAN PEDIATRICS 9. Kaga K, Kitazumi E, Kodama K. Auditory brainstem responses of kernicteric infants. Indian J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol : Perlman M, Fainmesser P, Sohnier H, Tamari H, Wax Y, Pevsmer B. Auditory nerve brainstem evoked responses in hyperbilirubinemia infants. Pediatrics 1983, 72: Weenberg RP, Ahlfors LE, Bickers R, McMurtry CA, Shetter JL. Abnormal auditory brainstem response in a newborn infant with hyperbilirubinemia: Improvement with exchange transfusion: J Pediatr 1982, 100: VOLUME 31-AUGUST Nawaesei OG, Aerde JV, Bodyden M, Perlman M. Changes in auditory brainstem responses in hyperbilirubinemic infants before and after exchange transfusion. Pediatrics 1985, 74: Chin KC, Taylor MJ, Perlman M. Improvement in auditory and visual evoked potentials in jaundiced preterm infants after exchange transfusion. Arch Dis Child 1985, 60: Chisin R, Perlman M, Sohmer H. Cochlear and brainstem responses in hearing loss following neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. Ann Oto rhinol aryngol 1979, 88: